Empathy Levels and Personal Meaning Profiles of Psychological Counselor Candidates: A Longitudinal Study

Abstract

The aim of this longitudinal study was to examine the empathy levels and personal meaning profiles of the psychological counseling candidates studying at university. The research was based on descriptive method. The main purpose was to comparatively examine the changes in the empathy levels and personal meaning profiles of the participants with respect to years. The study group consisted of 36 participants (30.6% of whom were boys, and 69.4% of whom were girls) who were studying at university between the academic years of 2015 and 2019. The data were collected once each year (first, second, third, and fourth grades) from the participants involved in the study group. In order to collect data, which were then analyzed using Statistical Package (SPSS), One Way Anova with repeated measures and the Friedman Test were used. The findings revealed that the basic empathy levels of the prospective psychological counselors did not change during their undergraduate studies, whereas the level of their pursuit of personal meaning in religion and intimacy did change. Counselor Candidates received the highest score in the first year and the lowest score in the fourth year on the dimensions of religion and intimacy of the Personal Meaning Profile scale.

Interoceptive awareness mediated the effects of a 15‐minute diaphragmatic breathing on empathy for pain: A randomized controlled trial

“…However, some researchers believe that a reduction of empathy in healthcare professionals might enhance the precision of clinical tasks (Cheng et al., 2007; Decety et al., 2010). In specific medical situations, such as surgery, oncology, or psychological counseling, maintaining an emotional distance from patients is beneficial for preserving clinical objectivity (Düşünceli et al., 2021; Halpern, 2003; Levinson et al., 1997). Meanwhile, being empathic could potentially alleviate healthcare professionals' stress and “compassion fatigue” (Cavanagh et al., 2020).…”